Usually a “bang for buck” watch thread becomes a list a lot of fantastic watches you can pick up for not much money and are great performers. I think my Seiko SKX009 and Christopher Ward C60 Trident quartz fit nicely into this category; great watches, well built, and not a lot of money to buy. This one may seem a little strange then as a bang for buck watch given it's reasonable cost but the more I think about it, the more I think this is the best value watch I’ve owned, the Zenith Choronmaster Moonphase.
For starters, it looks absolutely gorgeous. It’s 38.5mm diameter and about 13mm thick and features the wonderful and in house El Primero 410z movement, a true hi beat (36,000 vph) COSC certified movement that can measure 10ths of a second and makes the seconds hand move very smoothly. For the few who may not know, this is the movement Rolex used in the Daytona until they got around to making their own movement for it. The movement has a 50 hour power reserve and contains 354 individual parts. Mine has gained 1 second in 2 days wearing it all day and storing it dial up overnight.
As well as normal time telling features it also has a chronograph, moon phase, and calendar featuring day, date, AND month.
Build quality and fit and finish of this watch is absolutely superb. I’ve owned a few Zeniths prior to this but this particular model has really stood out for me. The pushers for the chrono are solid and have a very satisfying click to them when pushed and there is no “play” at all in the crown when setting the hands.
It also features a sapphire crystal display back so you can see the El Primero movement in all its glory.
So, for your money you get:
A well respected, in house hi beat movement
Sapphire crystal front and back
Hours, minutes, seconds
Day, Date, Month
Moonphase
Chronograph capable of measuring 10ths of a second
Very high build quality
Now to the bang for buck part which some may agree or disagree with but I’ve seen these go on forums for between £2200 - £2600 depending on age / condition and whether it’s the bracelet or strap version which given the movement, complications, and general build of the watch I think is a real bargain. Mine came with all original boxes and paperwork and is near mint showing no signs of wear to the head and minimal to the strap (which I changed for a Hirsch Viscount I had in my strap box as I preferred it) so was at the higher end of the quoted figures through a trade deal but to me still a hell of a lot of watch for the money.
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Originally Posted by Beaunidle
